Republic Defenders: Cosmic Chaos
by Kojuro Katakura
Summary: A Griping story about my guild, The Republic Defenders.


_**A long time ago in**_

_**A galaxy far far away…**_

A war has broken out between the Galactic Republic and The Empire after a brutal attack on Corusant. The broken Republic forces have broken through a blockade thanks to the help of a independent smuggler force, and a growing task force made up of Jedi, troopers, and smugglers alike. Known as the Republic Defenders, their growing popularity and numbers have brought new hope to the Republic as well as more hardships for the Republic Defenders. This is one of their stories.

**Chapter 1: Meeting of the mined's **

In a meeting room in the Jedi temple on Corusant.

Grand Master Von Typhoon walks into the meeting room realizing that everyone he requested had shown up including Grand Admiral Xanto and Adwan, The Republic Defender's main smuggler contact. Von looks around the room satisfied to see that the entire counsel made it.

Von, "Thank you everyone for coming under the circumstances. I know you are all very busy, we are at war after all. But this meeting is very important as you all may know."

Alek Kun the second in command of the jedi spoke up. "We know Von, we are here to support you no matter what happens. How could we not come?"

Von nodded his head slightly. "Thank you Alek, that means a lot. Well as you all know we have broken the blockade thanks to Adwan and his smuggler friends. But we still have a war to fight and win here, and to do that we are going to more ships and allies. We might have hit the Empire back hard, but this war is far from over!"

Helm Doran, the official negotiator and spokesperson for the Republic Defenders stood up. Speaking in his precise manner. "Grand Master, I have been hard at work cultivating alliances with many other factions. We are in a good position to put up a good fight against the Imperials and the Sith.

Von replied. "I am glad to hear that we are picking up steam now, and we can't let ourselves be discouraged. We must keep this up until the real fight starts. We need to take the time we've been given and plan out our next move to make. We cant afford any mistakes at this point." Von continued. "It is imperative that we secure our foothold or else things will get messy, and I know you all don't wont this war to carry on longer then necessary.

Gradin raised his hand to capture Von's attention.

"Yes?" Master Gradin Von said.

Gradin- "Well right now we are a little scattered, we need to regroup and start concentrating on specific targets one at a time. We are currently scattering ourselves to help Republic forces everywhere we can but, we are weakening ourselves. The Republic can handle a lot of those battles themselves. We need to rally our forces together again. Make ourselves like a sharp sword to take down our opponents one at a time. Which is why The Defenders was put together to do in the first place.

General Denth spoke up. "Yes, I agree if we wish to make a real impact in this war then we need to hit the enemy hard, and the best way to do that is gather are forces up, attack and then regroup again. It's called guerrrilla warfare and it's very effective against a large enemy. You don't just try to kill him outright. You take him apart piece by piece till there is nothing left.

Alek countered. "But we can't just leave The Republic to fend for itself. We aren't going to be much help if the Republic is destroyed while we are off fighting our own war.

"We won't be." Xanto interrupted. "It's not like we are The Republic's only forces. We are more like a special task force of The Republic. Given special permission to carry out our own missions. If you look at the big picture, we are just a small portion of the Republic's strength, it has its own forces and can fend for itself. Looking at it like that makes you think that our forces are small in comparison, so regrouping and making strategic strikes against the enemy is our job.

Octavia agreed." The only way we are going to win this war is by working together. So we all need to agree to this, or its never going to work. We all need to believe in our goal or our resolve will begin to waver, and we won't be able to do what needs to get done effectively.

Monty spoke up. "Well you all know what my vote is. As long as I get the chance to take down Imperials, I am in."

"I agree Von, the only way to win is to regroup." Agreed Yoken.

Facing Gradin, Xangba states. "I see the wisdom in your words Gradin. Though we must remember not to become like those we are against. Let our actions be for the purpose of bringing this war to a swift and sound resolution and not to just hurt the enemy.

Aarim Ruiem said loudly. " Then are we all agreed on then?"

Nervously shifting around, Alek responded. "It really seems like you guys know what you are doing, so I will go along with it.

Von concludes. "Ok then, its decided. We are going to regroup and begin building up our forces for a major assault, even though I have no idea where we are going to strike first."

Von, getting up to leave, continues speaking. "So I guess that's it for now. I want all of you to start getting as many of our forces back as humanly possible, without any mistakes. If we are going to do this, then lets at least do this right. Von leaves the room.

**Chapter 2: Bar Meetings**

Kojuro Katakura and Kevin Caedus two Jedi waited patiently in a bar on Tatooine called the Drunken Rancor, for the Imperial contact to arrive.

Just a couple of weeks before Kojuro and Kev were given a mission to track down some rumors of the Imperials building a super weapon that would turn the tide of the war to The Imperials side. At first they expected to find nothing but Imperial agents spreading rumors to scar Republic citizens.

What they didn't expect to find was that the rumors seemed to be true. After interviewing several people that led them to a Imperial agent that wanted to negotiate for the information saying he had hard evidence of construction plans to build the super weapon, and had agreed to meet them in the Drunken Rancor to discuss his price for the information.

"How long are we going to have to wait for this guy to show up? He is two hours late, and it was his idea to meet here at this time" Kev said while impatiently tapping his fingers on the bar.

Kojuro shifted in Kev's direction "It shouldn't be too much longer after all we could just be falling into a Imperial trap. I just want to wait a little longer to make sure our contact didn't run into some trouble and need to double back before coming here" Kojuro responded while scanning the bar for any suspicious activity.

The two were dressed as inconspicuously as they possibly could. Kojuro, wearing a dark blue t-shirt and black pants with a black leather coat. He had his trusty M88 gold and white blaster pistol in a holster hanging loosely from his waist in its holster, and his two light sabers, hidden in two counseled pockets on the inside of his coat.

Kev was wearing a dusty Moisture Farmer outfit that was light tan on the upper part, and a darker brown on the lower part. Had his light saber hidden under his shirt. If anyone looked at them, they would have just assumed that Kev was just another young Tatooine boy looking to get off the dust ball planet by trying to hire a smuggler to transport him wherever he just happened to be heading to.

Then Kojuro felt a small flutter in the force and looked over to the entrance to see that their contact had arrived wearing a dark gray tunic, and pants with the presence of someone who has had military training and was trying to act casually but couldn't completely erase his posture, sat next to them at the bar.

The man looked nervously at them and said "The sands seem to be blowing strong today."

Kojuro responded "Ya wish someone would just blow this planet up and do the galaxy a favor."

It was the code phrase, and the man eased noticeably. "Sorry for being late, I felt like I was being followed so I led them around for a bit and I think I lost them" the man said nervously tapping his leg.

Kojuro held out his hand "My name is Kojuro, nice to meet you, and I presume you have what we came for?"

"My name is Corporal Janis, but unfortunately I do not have it with me. It is in a safe place and I will take you there as soon as we come to some sort of agreement" Janis stated, not taking Kojuro's hand.

Kev looked at Janis suspiciously "Well that all depends on what kind of information you give us, and how valuable it is." Kev retorted.

"Keep in mind that we are just here to see what you have. We aren't authorized to give you anything, but we will do everything we can to make sure you get what you want. As long as it is worth it to the Republic" Kojuro added.

"Believe me, it's worth it. I am actually not going to ask for much, after all it's not money I am after" Janis insisted. "All I want is to retain my rank and position as a conditioned officer, under the Republic's flag. And the promise that something will be done quickly about what I am about to give you" Janis offered.

Kev continued to look at Janis suspiciously " How are we supposed to believe that this isn't some sort of setup, and that it's not a trick to plant a IMP spy in the Republic forces." Kev insisted.

Janis turned to look at Kev, giving him a agitated look " Because if I were lying then something tells me you would already know I was lying, and this conversation would already be over." Janis stated flatly.

For the most part Janis was right, Kojuro could not sense that he was lying. He also knew that if he passed this chance up and people got killed because of his decision, he wouldn't be able to live with himself. Besides Janis' offer wasn't unreasonable, and Kojuro could sense a deep yearning to do something better with his life. After all if the Republic didn't trust him they could just have someone to keep a eye on him.

"Well Janis you have convinced me, like I said before, though we don't have the authority to give you what you want, your request is reasonable enough that I can promise you that you will get what you want." Kojuro said while scanning the bar one more time. "So how about you take us to where you have this information hidden , so we can get off this planet?" Kojuro asked.

Janis hesitated for a second, then reluctantly agreed. "Well I guess it's the best I can hope for. After all if I was being followed then that means that my superiors are on to me, and am no longer safe here. I really have no choice but to hope that you hold up your end of the bargain." Janis said mournfully. "I guess my life is in your hands now, let's get off this dirtball planet" Janis finished.

Kev and Kojuro got up to leave but Kev leaned towards Kojuro and whispered apprehensively." Are you sure about this guy?"

"I know you didn't sense that he was lying, like I did, but I understand your hesitation. At least we know that he isn't willfully leading us into a trap. The least we can do is follow him and see what he has to offer. If we run into a trap we will just have to deal with it when that time comes. Just keep your guard up" Kojuro whispered back, as they proceeded to exit the bar with Janis in the lead.

**Chapter 3: Back ally confrontation**

Kojuro and Kev exited the bar closely behind Janis trying not to look suspicious or draw unwanted attention in their direction. Kojuro reached out with the force, letting it flow through him, to sense the presence of the people around him. Both him and Kev were making sure that nobody had recognized them and was following them. Almost at once they felt it. The presence of someone that wanted to follow and kill them. Kojuro and Kev exchanged looks and knew that now was not the time to deal with them. They would have to wait for a better time to take them on, when they could do it more quietly and with no one watching. Janis, not being a Jedi, didn't appear to notice. But that might just be a cover seeing as Kojuro or Kev didn't know the extent of the man's skill.

Janis led them twisting down alleys and back streets. Kojuro and Kev believed in a attempt to loose any pursuers, but this time it didn't work. Kojuro and Kev could still sense the two men behind them. In fact Kojuro and Kev could hardly understand how the man had survived for so long, making them think that his superiors must have known him to be a traitor all along, and that they where just using him to root out anyone that would pose a threat.

Kojuro leaned in close to Kev and whispered "Around the next corner, hold back for a bit. Its time that we lost these guys before they decide to report us back to there superiors."

Kev nodded. "I agree, we need to do it now before we reach are destination." Kev added

Janis, Kojuro, and Kev all turned the corner. Then Kev split off and leaned into two spaces in the wall. After taking a few paces forward, Kojuro turned around and pulled out his blaster, causing Janis to stop in his tracks and pull out his own blaster. The two men turned the corner and as soon as they saw Kojuro. They quickly tried to pull their blasters out. Kev was too quick for them. He bolted out of the shadows cutting the first man in half before he even had time to finish aiming. The second man hadn't even finished getting his blaster out before Kojuro had put a smoking hole in him. The fight was over before it had a chance to begin, and the two men lay dead at their feet.

Kev looked over at Kojuro and said "Well. Looks like we got them. Now let's get out of here before someone's curiosity gets the better of them, and decides to see what all the commotion was about."

Kojuro nodded. "I agree, let's go." Then turned to Janis. "After you." Kojuro added, ignoring the shocked expression on Janis's face.

After just a few minutes Janis turned around and stated. "Here we are." Gesturing to the small hut to his left. "I have this place rented out under a different name. It has a safety deposit box in it. The information will be in there. The number to the box is 45862." Janis stated.

"Why are you telling us this? Aren't you coming in with us?" Kev asked not trying to hide the suspicion in his voice.

"Well seeing as we were being followed. I want to make sure that no one is waiting in there to ambush us. So it's better if two Jedi go in there before I do." Janis shot back at Kev, showing his dislike of still not being trusted.

"Ok you two, let's just finish this so we can get off of this planet" Kojuro insisted

Kev hesitated, but then submitted. "Ok. I will try to be more cooperative but I refuse to trust him, and if he doesn't like it then he can just find his way back to the Republic". Kev stated, not taking his eyes off of Janis.

Kojuro and Kev proceeded to enter the hut. It looked like a run down mess of broken furniture. The place looked like it had been abandoned for a long time. But after some searching they found a small black box that looked completely out of place in the small hut.

"Looks like we found what we were looking for." Kev mused.

"Well let's get what we need and see what we are going to be up against." Kojuro added.

Kojuro put in the code. The box opened up, revealing a data pad inside along with several sheets of flimsaplast. They all seemed to have schematics and binary readouts that showed systematic weaknesses and plans on improvements for the final completed version of the weapon.

Kojuro and Kev gawked at it for a second. Not able to believe their eyes. They found that the weapon is a simple idea. It was a weapon that seemed to pull giant asteroids from out of orbit and hurl them at planets, causing a massive impact that destroys the planet completely, or producing a nuclear winter, killing everything on the surface.

Janis entered the hut, satisfied that there where no sounds of people shooting each other and that it was safe to go in.

"Well it seems that you found it. It's quite remarkable isn't it?" Janis asked "I mean for a planet killing super weapon, that is" Janis added.

"If that's what you want to call it." Kev answered.

"Don't get me wrong I hate the idea of weapons like this. That's why I am giving you this information, but you have to admit that for all its simplicity, it is quite devastating."

"There is still one thing that we need to know though. Where are they building it?" Kojuro asked.

"Well that's the easy question." Janis proceeded. "It's here."

**Chapter 4: Super Weapon Infiltrations**

The roar of a drop ship entering Tatooine's atmosphere was a normal occurrence on Tatooine, with all the smugglers and traders coming and going for business. No one would have suspected that this particular transport was carrying one of the most dangerous special forces unit the Republic had to offer. Nor that their mission was to infiltrate and destroy a Imperial base hidden hear on Tatooine.

Noble Team was preparing to make a drop on Tatooine's surface. Nerves might have been on edge, but any marine could tell you no matter how used you are to being thrown into a battle the nerves never go away, and Capt. Garrett Nexus was the most nervous one in his squad. He was the only one who new the details of this mission and soon he would have to brief his squad on the dangers he was about to lead them into. For the most part though, Noble team was as always ready to head out. Nerves might have been high but so was morale and the excitement and adrenaline that went with these kind of missions.

Garret stood at the front of the drop ship listening to the pilots on how close they were getting to their drop point. Since this had to be a stealth mission they would have to be air dropped approximately ten miles from there objective. Then they would proceed to move in quick and quietly to the base. Luckily missions like this is what Noble team exceeded at.

Garret turned to his team after deciding that they were close enough for him to fill them in on the mission. "Ok team. It's time that I filled you in on what we are doing here on Tatooine. First of all, this mission is probably going to be the most importent one we have ever done. The safety of the Republic and all its citizens counts on us to succeed. At approximately twenty two hundred hours we are going to be dropped ten miles from our objective. I will then brief you on the next step. Does anyone have any questions?" Garret asked, taking in the enthusiasm that seemed to be spreading through the room.

"Yes, I do." Said a voice in the back of the room. Garrett to his great surprise hadn't noticed, and there stood Master Zalcara Nexus with a big smile on his face. "Hi Garrett bet you didn't think I would be tagging along with your little group here, did you?" Zalcara asked, giving Garrett the biggest smile he could muster. Garrett got the impression that Zalcara was very pleased with himself.

"Well actually no. My superiors said nothing about you joining this mission but regardless, its good to have you hear Zal we could use another Jedi on this mission. Something tells me we are going to need you." Garrett surmised thinking the missions through and convincing himself the help was needed. "Well it feels good to be needed. that's for sure, and I want you to know that I am not trying to join your team or anything. I am just hear as backup and support ok." Zalcara admitted not trying to hide the anticipation in his voice. "Just point me to the Imperials and grunt. I can handle the rest." Zalcara continued wile chuckling.

At that point the pilot gave a signal, meaning they where approaching the drop point. "Ok men are you ready?" Garrett asked in his loud drill sergeant voice. His team gave him there answer with a chant "FOR THE REPUBLIC!" they all said in unison. Garrett smiled " Then get the hell off my ship." He said with a smile.

Then the green light in the passenger bay turned on and the hatch opened reveling a dusty, desert like terrain. "GO GO GO GO" Garrett shouted as his team began to jump out the hatch, Talon Pain lead the charge out the hatch fallowed by Carmi Dai Nexus, Caira Zee Nexus, Linas, and then John Manuntut. "Well let it be said that I was dumb enough to jump out of a perfectly good drop ship." Zalcara mused as he jumped after the others. "And let it be said that I was dumb enough to follow you" Garrett mused back, as he jumped after him.

After the entire team made it down, Garrett made sure that the area was secure before moving on. "Well, looks like we get to start this mission off fairly uneventful." Caira mused. "Well watch what you say there. Caira, things never stay that way for long." Talon retorted playfully but still sounding stern. "Ok team that's enough chatter for now, let's move out." Garrett ordered.

The walk to the base was a long hard drudge but everything so far had gone as planned, and now they were approaching the base where the super weapon lay. With it the nerves of the team began to rise, but all that seemed to do was feed their adrenaline for the upcoming fight. "Ok men it's time I inform you about the rest of the mission." Garrett said beckoning them all to gather around in a huddle. "Ok team, I need us to split into 3 groups." Garrett began gauging the team, trying to decide how he was going to arrange the groups." Ok me and Zalcara are going to infiltrate the base to the left. From the reports that we received from the team that found the bases location. There should be a air duct to sneak into, and I am going to need Zal's help with that particular feat." Garrett admitted wanting the more dangerous entrance into the base to be the one he had to take.

"Let me guess. You put on a few more pounds and need me to give you a push when we try and squeeze threw that tight vent." Zalcara jested, causing the team to chuckle under their breath, but abruptly ended when they noticed the look that Garrett gave them. Garrett let it slide though noticing that the joke made them all less tense then when they where a few minutes ago.

"Ok, now the second team will consist of Talon, Carmi, and Caira. I am going to need you to head to the roof. The base is below ground, not above, so it shouldn't be to high up, just don't forget to keep it quiet. We don't need them to know that we are here before we want them to." Garrett informed them. "How do we enter the base from there, sir?" Talon commented trying to find out as much as he could before entering the base. "There is a hatch on the roof that they use to post guards so expect some opposition, just remember to take them out quietly, ok." Garrett answered. Talon gave Garrett a salute. " YES SIR!" Talon said cheerfully.

"Lastly I need the third team to consist of John, Linas, and Macrious. I need you guys to secure the front door. If you guys see anyone coming in or out of there I need you to notify me immediately." Garrett stated giving them a serious look. "But I thought we where going in with you guys, I don't wont to be stuck out here while you guys have all the fun." John said sounding agitated. "Well I am not planning on you staying out here, as soon as I give you the signal I am going to need you guys to start a diversion out here. I need as many troopers running to see what is going on out here so that they don't notice us slipping in, you got that Sergeant." Garrett explained. "YES SIR." John answered understanding the plan better now.

The teams started to split up into there respective groups, then started to get ready to head out to there respective stations but Garrett held up his hand to stop them and said. "One more thing before we begin. I have received word that the team that discovered the information on this base disobeyed orders to return to the Jedi counsel and might have already infiltrated the base. Our orders are to make sure they get out of there safely and return them to the Jedi temple, by force if necessary." Zalcara looked puzzled. "And who would have been stupid enough to go in there alone and without any backup." Talon jeered. Garrett smiled. "Master Kojuro Katakura and Master Kevin Caedus." Zalcara suddenly busted out laughing. "Well I should have known only Kojuro would have done something that crazy, well other then me of course." Zalcara teased wiping the tears from his eyes from laughing so hard. Garrett looked at Zalcara, smirking. "I know Zal. Let's just hope they didn't get in over there heads this time." Garrett said now resuming his more serious posture. "OK TEAMS MOOVE OUT." Everyone dispersed in the direction of their objectives.

Garrett and Zalcara moved to their position to the left of the base stopping short behind a small sand dune, checking to see if there was any guards stationed at the vent. There seemed to be a couple so Garrett pulled out his E11 Sniper Rifle witch he had strapped to his back and took aim. The E11 was a silent but deadly sniper rifle, using laser propelled pellets instead of laser bolts making it virtually imposable to hear. Garrett peered down his laser sight and squeezed of a couple of shots off with a almost inaudible "puff", "puff" the two guards fell over dead with identical, perfectly round holes in the heads. After double checking to make sure no one had noticed the two guards go down. Garrett and Zalcara moved up.

Looking at the vent more closely now Zalcara could see that this was not going to be easy, after all its not like there would be such a seemingly easy way into a secure Imperial base. The vent most likely had all sorts of sensors and automated defenses. Garrett seemed to be thinking the same thing with the look he was giving him. "Ok how do you want to do this." Zalcara said in a whisper. "Well, Command figured this was going to be the case, so I have a jamming dives that should cloak us from the sensors. But if there are any automated defenses we might have to destroy a few and hope that the jammer will keep it from setting off any alarms." Garrett answered lowering his head in thought. "Well guess we are just going to have to cross that bridge when we come to it, but if we get caught I'm throwing you over that bridge." Zalcara said with a smirk. "Not if I throw you over first" Garrett jested back, not taking his eyes off the vent.

Garrett started to cut though the derasteal bars with his hand held laser torch. After finishing Garrett spoke into his com. "Ok, team one is clear and ready for entry. All teams report in." "Team two is clear and ready for entry." Came Talon's slightly muffled voice over the com. Then John's voice came next. "Team three has your back. Ready and waiting for the signal boss." "Ok team, we are going dark. No more chatter over the com till I give the signal for team three to start the distraction." Garrett ordered over the com. " is that clear?" Both teams acknowledged with a "roger" over the com and then went silent.

Garrett and Zalcara began to climb through the vent. It wasn't easy, it was cramped, hot, and almost imposable to see but so far they hadn't run into any problems but both of them believed that there luck wouldn't last. It wasn't long before they came to a drop, so Zalcara had to ease Garrett down using the force. At the bottom of the drop the vent led into a duct that was a bit wider then the vent. Zalcara sensed that there was trouble ahead so they proceeded cautiously down the duct. All of a sudden a turret popped up and the two were soon being rained on by a storm of blaster bolts. Zalcara quickly summoned his lightsaber to his hand and began deflecting blaster bolts while Garrett took up position behind him trying to fire back at the turrets, but the turrets had some sort of shielding around them. The two knew they wouldn't last in this position much longer without any cover. Garrett, finding it hard to see through the whirling light of Zalcara's light saber, was just barely able to make out how many turrets there was. He was certain now that there where only three. So he took out an ion grenade and threw it at one of the turrets. It began to spark and seizure before exploding. Zalcara, able to move more freely now that the rain of laser bolts had lessened, dashed force assisted towards one of the two remaining turrets and impaled it on his lightsaber. The final turrets began to swivel in Zalcara's direction, but he was too fast, and with a quick horizontal slash cut the final turret in two.

"Well that was eventful." Zalcara said with a smile. "And here I was thinking we weren't going to have any fun climbing through these stuffy vents." Garrett smirked at the comment. " Well I could have done without the excitement until we finish the mission, so if it's all the same to you let's continue and hope that we didn't set of any alarms." Garrett retorted. "You're the boss." Zalcara teased back as they headed further down the duct.

Something started eating at Garrett now. Why hadn't an alarm been sounded back there. He knew his jammer was working but if the turrets where hardwired directly into the security system, then as soon as a intruder was identified it would have sent a direct signal to the mainframe alerting the guards and sounding an alarm. Something felt off, but he couldn't place his finger on it. If there was something off then they would just have to deal with it when the time came. They couldn't afford to scrub the mission, it was too important.

After just a few more minutes they came to an opening in the vent. Zalcara reached out with the force, sensing to see if there was anybody out in the hallway. He found two guards in the corridor next to them. They should be able to exit the vent without the guards noticing but wasn't to sure about sneaking past them. Zalcara signaled to Garrett that there where two guards in the corridor using the military hand signals the team had practiced. Garrett signaled back his acknowledgment then pulled out a small vipro knife, ready just in case he needed to take the guards out quickly. Garrett began to cut the bars with his laser torch, while Zalcara continued to sense the two guards in the force reading their emotions to make sure they weren't alerted to there presence yet. After they finished cutting the bars, the two men exited into the hallway and checked the blueprints to make sure they where heading in the right direction. Garrett signaled that they where going to have to get past the two guards before moving on.

With one swift action, Garrett moved up behind one of the guards with the vipro knife and slit his throat. Before the other guard could do anything Zalcara moved up behind him and snapped his neck. Then the two of them headed down the corridor in the direction of the control room. If Garrett was right, they should be able to patch into the fleet com and send out word when they needed evac, but as they turned the next corner they ran into a couple of familiar faces. There stood Kojuro and Kevin wearing Imperial officers uniforms and smiling at them brightly.

**Chapter 5: Defiant Decision**

After sending the information on the blueprints they found, Kojuro and Kevin decided to wait for further orders. The wait was starting to get to them as Kojuro began to start pacing around the living room of the small broken down hut. Kev began to tap his leg impatiently to the annoyance of Janis. "How long are they going to keep us waiting? If we are going to do something, we need to do it now!" Kojuro said suddenly, making Janis jump. Kevin looked in Kojuro's direction with a tired expression. "What do you want us to do? You know we can't do anything without backup, its only a matter of time before they give us the go ahead." Then Kevin got up and pointed a finger at Janis. "Besides, it's not like we can just leave this guy here. We made a deal and we have to uphold our end of it. "I know that Kev. It's not like I am saying we need to head out with our guns half charged. I am just saying that this is serious and we cant wait for the counsel to decide what we should do next. It might be too late by then." Kojuro retorted trying to put as much urgency in his voice as he could. "Well it's not like we can take Janis with us. I mean the guy is probably useless in a fight, not to mention if he gets hurt we will never hear the end of it." Kevin fired back, trying to convince himself more then Kojuro. Janis, not liking what was just said, decided to step in."Wait just one minute now I worked very hared for my rank and I will not…." "SHUT UP" Kojuro and Kevin shouted at the same time shutting Janis up instantly.

After a few seconds had passed Kojuro and Kevin began laughing at each other, confusing Janis, but braking the tension that was beginning to build inside the room. Then to no ones surprise the comlink started beeping at them. Everyone in the room went silent as Kojuro thumbed on the receiver. "Well looks like we didn't have to wait long after all." Kevin stated as a hologram of Grand Master Von appeared in front of them. Kojuro took a step forward and gave Von a short bow. "Its good to see you Master Von, I didn't expect you would be the one giving us our next orders". Von gave a short bow back before speaking " Yes, well this mission is extremely important and requires my full attention. Which if I may say, is not easy to get". "Well I guess we should take that as a compliment then." Kevin said with a slight grin on his face. Von shot Kevin a look that suggested he better take it as a complement. Kojuro gave a short cough to break the silence that followed "So. I take it that you are going to need us to infiltrate the base and destroy the super weapon, or at least sabotage the base in some way that will make it easier to send in a strike team to finish up the job." Kojuro asked in a way that seemed like he was making a statement more then asking permission. Von lowered his gaze and took a more serious tone in his voice. "No. Actually I am ordering you back to the Jedi Temple for your next assignment." Von stated. Both Kevin and Kojuro gave each other a look of surprise not expecting what Von had just said. "What?" Kojuro said with surprise, looking like he must not have heard Von right. While Kevin just stood there in a shocked silence. "I am sorry, but the Jedi are stretched thin enough as it is. I also need you two to continue looking into other possible Empyreal threats that may be out there. If we had you check up on, or take care of every single thing that popped up, we might end up losing important information that could lead to the Republic losing this war. Besides I can't ask you to go in there without any backup. You have no idea what could be waiting for you in there. It is a secret high security base after all." Von finished looking at them both seriously so as to impose the importance of his decision.

Kojuro shook his head coming out of shock at what Von was telling him, deciding that he was not hearing things. "I understand what your saying Von, I really do." Kojuro's expression suddenly became more serious "But we don't know what kind of timetable we are dealing with here. If we wait for a strike team to show up, it might be too late." Kojuro suggested to Von. Kevin, also seeming to come out of his daze, decided to speak up. "I agree with Kojuro on his one, I mean we have no idea how much time we have till the weapon is operational." Kevin agreed. Kojuro turned to Kevin and gave him a surprised look. "Wait wait just one sec, just a minute ago weren't you against going without backup." Kevin gave Kojuro a sly look. "What can I say" Kevin said shrugging his shoulders. "You're a good negotiator". "Now wait just one minute you two". Von began but Kojuro interrupted him. "Sorry Von but your breaking up hshsshshsshss we cant understan…..shshshsshsshssh". Then Kojuro shut off the comlink and turned to Kevin. "Well looks like we are going to be in it deep when this is all over." Kojuro said while chuckling under his breath. Kevin laughed. "Only if we survive, that is." "Well then lets get started. Janis, you don't happen to have a couple of spare uniforms do you?" Kojuro asked, shifting in Janis's direction. Janis gave a short smile. "I think I just might."

After gathering everything they might need, Kojuro and Kevin met with Janis in the back alley behind the Drunken Rancor to collect the uniforms they would need to sneak into the base. "Well. It looks like this is goodbye for now." Kojuro said, while checking his own uniform to make sure it was in good order. "Just try not to get yourself killed while we are away." Kojuro finished giving Janis a mock smile. "Same to you Jedi." Janis said giving Kojuro and Kevin a salute. Shortly after the talk with Von, the two Jedi decided that it would be best if Janis stayed at the ship until they complete the mission. So the two Jedi disguised in the uniforms got onto there hover car, they had rented, and headed off to the base.

It didn't take long for them to reach their destination, but now it was time for the hard part. Getting in. They approached the base and flashed the ID's to the guards. Kojuro knew this was the moment they would find out if Janis was on the level. If the ID's passed inspection then they would know that he was on their side now. The guard looked at them and then waved them through. Kojuro, after moving out of the guard's eyesight Kojuro sighed. "Well that's one problem taken care of." Kojuro gave Kevin a small grin. "Let's just keep moving. I don't know what we might run into down here." Kevin retorted as him and Kojuro headed down the passage.

After getting to their assigned quarters. The two began their efforts to sabotage the bases defenses. Over the next day, the two had succeeded in reducing the defense turrets power and reaction time as well as disable several of the bases alarm systems. Suddenly Kojuro felt a familiar presence in the force. Kojuro began to flash Kevin a big grin. "What are you so happy about all the sudden?" Kevin asked with a suspicious look on his face. "A good friend just arrived and I think we should go out and meet him." Kojuro said while walking out into the passage way, Kevin following closely behind him.


End file.
